Ladies and gentleman, we’re doing it! As I wake up on Saturday morning from a tiring family vacation, back in my own bed at last, I am blown away by where you have all managed to take me after just a couple of days.
I’m in second place, trailing 1st place by 10 and leading over 3rd place by almost 20! It’s not a bad place to be! But of course, as I’m sure you can all relate, I doubt I’ll be able to fully relax until this thing is over and that’s quite a ways away still. The entire contest has been equally exhilarating and fear inducing on a near paralytic level. When I am threatened by that terrifying catatonia, it’s thinking about how many people took up arms on my behalf that puts a little wind back in my sails and gets me moving again.
There are two things that I would ask of you all this weekend:
1) Take a minute to read what you’ve preordered. The 1st five chapters are available to anyone who has preordered, but I’ve gotten some feedback that accessing it is not that simple. Most people have been able to find Chapter 1, though, and once you’ve done that- there’s a little hidden toolbar at the bottom of the screen with a dropdown menu on it that selects the chapter. I’d love to have your feedback on as many of these starting chapters as you feel comfortable sharing! In more ways than one, this is OUR book now. Even if I’m the father, you are all midwives, helping me to birth this creation into the world of the living.
2) The second thing that I would ask of you is just as important as having ordered the book in the first place. I am very near the point of saturation with my friends and family. So many of you wonderful people responded so quickly, which is fantastic and the reason that I am where I’m at today, but it also means that I am running out of people to ask directly. I have started working on posters that I can hang around town, business cards that I can pass out, and I’m making connections with several writing/reading groups that I can approach… but those are things that are going to take a few days to get moving. My biggest fear is that by the time I get ready to take action on these campaign ideas, I’ll be starting from behind again. Which brings me to the next ask: Would you please find at least one person that you would ask to preorder on my behalf?
Facebook posts are good and all, but from my experience, it’s the people that you approach on a more personal level that really take you seriously. I need that kind of dedication from those of you who have already done more than I have a right to ask. My biggest strengths in this contest really don’t have anything to do with my writing- it’s a publishing contest after all, not a writing contest. My biggest strength is that I am banking on having a more dedicated, loving group of friends and family than anyone I’ve ever known and I’m counting on that belief to help me reach this goal that, only a few days ago, I would have assumed was insurmountable.
Thank you all- you already have my unending gratitude. Any help you provide next enters into a saintly territory.
Sincerely,
Robert Wren